So I was at work having ridden in on my SOB[1] and found the new seatpost I’d bought was slightly undersized for the single-pinch frame; the seat kept dropping irrespective of how tightly the bolt was torqued. Examination showed some metal flare which would need to be removed with a Dremel before the clamp could be sufficiently tightened to hold the seatpost… and my Dremel was at home. Bugger.

I needed a shim to take up the slack. Paper would never survive insertion, plastic similarly… I needed some thin gauge sheet metal, a sort of heavy foil…

…so I disassembled a used Nespresso capsule – slid it in with the seatpost and torqued it.

Worked fine, got me home, and now the problem’s been properly fixed.

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[1] “shite old bike”, pretentiously a “hybrid”, honestly a 1992 steel-framed Raleigh Amazon with no suspension, second generation MTB wheels, uprated modern Shimano brakes (no more centre-pull), 26″ Schwalbe Marathon slicks, a rear rack, viciously spiked “downhill” pedals, a Brookes saddle and a new seatpost. About half the bike has been replaced. Works, is solid, comfy, and I don’t need to worry about it getting nicked.